He was a key role player as a sophomore, when Bolingbrook brought home a third-place trophy in 2015. Last year, he averaged 14 points and seven rebounds in helping the Raiders to a regional championship game after losing four starters.

“He’s so much more mature as a player this year, compared to last year,” Brost said. “If he doesn’t play particularly well it doesn’t bother him as much as it did last year.”

Brost has seen the improvement on the court as well.

“Off the dribble he’s improved a lot,” the Raiders coach said. “He's known as a player who can catch and shoot from deep and his ability to dunk, but that in-between game … This year he's been taking it to the basket a lot more and he becomes harder to guard when he does that.”

“We gelled really fast actually,” Akenten said. “Our personalities matched up perfectly. Them being here definitely helped out the team. It relieves a lot of pressure off myself and makes our team run that much more deep and makes it tough for teams to matchup with us.”

Nebraska coach Tim Miles expects Akenten to make an impression right away for the Huskers, who are looking to improve on a 12-19 season and 12th-place finish in the Big Ten.

“He's very athletic for a player who is going to be a two-guard in the Big Ten,” Brost said of his all-stater. “You don’t find too many 6-6 two-guards in the Big Ten. Coach Miles and his staff did a great job of recognizing that early and sealing the deal early.”

Former Bradley coach Jim Molinari, a Nebraska assistant, helped recruit Akenten to a team that already includes Chicago-area players Glynn Watson, Jr. (Westchester St. Joseph) and Ed Morrow (Simeon).

“I never saw myself going to such a great school with such a great coaching staff,” Akenten said. “They brought me in and made me feel real comfortable. The competition up there is impeccable. I've always wanted to be up against the best and that's what I will be doing next year.”

Akenten is the latest in a line of Division I recruits for Bolingbrook. Prentiss Nixon, a member of the 2015 third-place team, is averaging 13.2 points as a sophomore for Colorado State. Ben Moore is averaging 11.1 points per game for NCAA Tournament team SMU.

Stan Morris can be reached at 686-3214 or smorris@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @stanmorrispjs